Heart to Heart
by TheMonarchyOfRoses
Summary: Killing her mother at birth, Law's daughter drives through the perils of being raised by her single, sociopath of a father as she comes to terms with not only his, but her own evils, as well. Daddy!Law


Circumstances comprising of Law getting shot, stabbed, nearly mutilated, beaten, nearly arrested before becoming a shichibukai, and everything in between, merely demonstrated to him that despite his great and undeniable power, he was still only a vulnerable individual who had only luck and fortune to thank. This was further extended from his professional to his personal life, such as his young daughter coming hazardously close to finding the truth of her conception and the events that followed.

To the outside world, his exterior of cruelty had branded him as a one dimensional sentience, incapable of empathy or compassion. This had worked in his favor, discouraging many potential setbacks in the forms of enemies, all of which would be in over their heads if they could ever conceive of holding their own against the likes of him and his crew. Within the steel reinforcements of his submarine, his perceived image was quite the antithesis, particularly through the eyes of Scarlet. She only knew him to be cuddly, loving, patient, attentive, and authoritative. With the added guidance of her peculiar uncles, she had little reason to question the absence of her mother; one the rare occasions she came up, it would be nothing more than a fleeting moment, easily forgotten. Nowadays, Scarlet had come to hate her absent mother, believing her to have no conscious love for the child she bore. Her father more than compensated for that, so she was a content and happy child.

For the better of half an hour, Law had been holding her hands as a steady system of support as they exercised her walking. Her arms were nearly suspended over her head as she took light steps, the cringe worthy stinging sensation gradually waning. At the beginning of their physical therapy session, each moment of contact with the ground ignited tears and shrieks from Scarlet, tearing Law's heart. He hated that he could do nothing to ease her pain other than to medicate her, but she could not take any more foreign substances to her liver, so she had to deal with the full sensation of feeling. It had been approximately two months since she had injured herself, and in that time, her only means of movement had been being carried around by Law himself. Though he feared it would weaken her muscles, it had proved to be a bonding mechanism, bringing the already close father and daughter to a new level of understanding.

The duo had traveled a distance of one hundred feet in that half an hour. Her stitches were removed a week before as her scars were closed and safe from infection. He had bought her the softest material for socks to soften the blow to little avail.

"Daddy, I can't do it anymore! It hurts too much!" She complained.

"I know, sweet heart. Just five more steps and we will be finished."

She bravely finished her assignment, after which Law scooped her into his arms and walked towards the kitchen for dinner. Bepo turned out to be quite the cook, or at least by the standards of pirates. Like most other nights, grilled fish was their entree, which happened to be Law's favorite. Scarlet neither liked nor disliked the menu, usually finding it bland and tolerable. She did, however, devour any and all vegetables in any fashion. She would have been a vegetarian if it were not for her father acting as her dietician and mandating regular protein.

The crew ate as if they had been starved for weeks while Scarlet ate like a little lady, preferring most of her food to land in her mouth. Dinner time was the perfect window of opportunity to actually sit down and discuss the courses of their days, as well as bring up pressing matters that they felt needed to be dealt with.

"How's the walking again coming along, Scarlet?" Shachi asked, mouth overflowing with baked potato.

"I hate it. It hurts and I take forever. But it has to be done or I won't get better."

Law patted her back in support. She gave the uneaten half of her fish to her father, who would never refuse it. She in turn took the rest of his vegetables, a fair trade in his eyes.

"I remember when I was seventeen," Penguin began, "I was doing some stupid shit I don't remember, probably rock climbing at night. Anyway, I fell off the side of a mountain about twenty feet, and I broke my left ankle and both arms. I had my buddy help me limp home. The next day, I was at work at six in the morning at the docks, loading and unloading hundred pound boxes onto boats all day. It wasn't until a couple coworkers heard my arms snap three hours in until I actually went to a hospital. Just be grateful you're not an idiot like your Uncle Penguin."

He downed his shot of rum, shuddering at the unpleasant memory, which was not any gentler on Scarlet's imagination. The bottle was passed around to all of the adults, sparking a bit of jealousy from the seven year old. She had already asked before, earning a stern denial from Law. Said father was finished with his meal, and began cleaning after himself and Scarlet, bringing the dishes to the sink.

"So, what's the deal with the construction guys coming in and out of here from two weeks ago?" Bepo inquired.

"I have taken it upon myself to hire a qualified group to install a morgue as an extension of my lab. I figured it a conservation method for my experimentation, rather than waiting for the unfortunate bastards to expire."

"Since when did you take that Hippocratic Oath seriously, anyway?" Bepo mocked, earning a frightening glare.

"Sorry!"

"If you all will excuse me, I have business to attend to in my laboratory. Please do not disturb me unless it is of the utmost importance, as I intend to leave the door locked. Scarlet, I expect you to be in bed by nine."

He walked back to his daughter and kissed her head before disappearing down into his chambers. She was promised upon her natural maturation, she would eventually be permitted to watch some of his complex surgeries take place, as she began to show interest in following in her father's footsteps. He stated that before that time would arise, she would first need to learn how to walk again herself.

The next few hours involved the bacchanalian pirates polishing off three whole bottles of rum, with much more left in stock. If it were not for their lifestyle, the amounts of alcohol consumed would have killed them, but the grand scheme got them pretty drunk and happy. They had noted that Law would not emerge from his laboratory for quite some time, so with a few chuckles, they poured Scarlet a small shot for her, prompting doubt in her.

"Come on sweetie, just taste it. You've been dying to know forever." Shachi egged.

With a simple shrug, she drank the shot, expecting a terrible burn, but found that it was much smoother than anticipated. The taste itself was not anything remarkable, but it was certainly not bad, either. The men rationally thought that only two more shots would safely provide a buzz for her, not intending to potentially poison their niece. Back to back, she finished her drinks before being cut of, much to her chagrin.

"How you feeling?" Penguin slurred a bit.

"Good. A bit groovy." She felt even the most minute movements had a fluidity to them, bleeding into each other, but her cognitive function was far from impaired. She could get used to the feeling, but knew that it was not to come for quite a long time.

"My, my, what a beautiful little lady you're becoming, Scarlet. Your father's gonna have a hell of a time keeping the boys away when you're a teenager." They had all agreed.

"I doubt it. I never leave this sub much." She frowned.

"Don't worry, little girl, you'll get some space soon enough." Shachi gulped down his glass before a refill. "Thank God you didn't inherit anything from your mother. What a bitch!"

The three men toasted to that statement, of which caught Scarlet's attention quickly. When she asked why their opinion of her was so sour, they merely replied that she hurt many people, and would have readily done the same to her. All of the resentment she already felt only amplified with the conjecture of atrocity she held. Bepo looked at the clock on the wall to find that it was nine thirty, sloppily apologizing about them losing track. He picked up his ostensible niece and laid her down in her room, wishing her a good night before going back to the table for their drinking session.

"I can't believe it's been, like, eight years since we met that whore." Shachi grumbled.

"I hear ya. I can't believe we detested Law for wanting to keep the baby in the first place, but now I can't imagine life without her." Bepo stated.

They all sat in silence, having nothing more to say. Meanwhile, in the newly installed mortuary, Law had been observing the dozen or so corpses he already accumulated over the course of a few days. Half were women, the other half obviously being males. They all had been failed test subjects, not withstanding his new techniques of study. As per his modus operandi, they had all been evil, or so he had judged them to be. Although most of the corpses resided on cots within the walls, three had been hanging from the ceiling from their ankles.

"So do tell me, Thomas, what inspired you to become a kingpin in the first place? I find it most intriguing."

"Needed the money. Why the fuck else?"

"No need to get snippy with me," He snapped as he slapped him across the face, "I understand when money is an issue. What I do not understand, however, is why your greed would extend to forcing your own children to deal for you."

There was no answer, so he turned to his partner, Violet.

"And you. You had many opportunities to get yourself and your children away from this crooked man, but beyond staying, you had suggested employing the boys yourself. Anything you wish to explain."

"Fuck off!" She screamed.

"If you insist..."

He unhinged the chain from the wall, cascading Violet from where she hung onto the frigid floor. He squatted down in order to pick her up, minding his aching back. He carried her to the metal table that laid at the far corner of the mortuary, laying her down flat on her back. It was quiet enough for him to hear his own heartbeat, which was rising with every passing moment, ever so gradually. He mounted on top of her, his response being silence. It was commonly accepted that parents, especially new ones, would abstain from sexual intercourse, whether it be from fear of further procreation or general lack of drive with their energy being drained from the child. Law's reasons had been a hybrid of those excuses, among others. Tracing his hand over her cold body, he proceeded to copulate, as his whim desired.

When he was finished, he placed her into a cot and slid her into the wall, which then later went through a sealed tunnel that shot her into the ocean, her corpse presumably consumed by marine life. He walked back over to Thomas, who was screaming a string of angered obscenities at his captor.

"Now, now... It was not without precedence."

Thomas' complaining had struck a nerve within Law, who could no longer withstand his voice. Grabbing the ax installed next to the fire extinguisher on the wall, he sliced his jaw off in one swift motion, effectively silencing the deceased kingpin. He then stuffed him into the chute to send him into the sea, leaving behind his blood.

"Such a pity to waste a great amount of fresh blood... Perhaps it was tainted, though." He rationalized.

He slipped out of his soiled attire and stepped into the installed shower, washing the stench of dead woman off of him, along with man's blood. When he stepped out, the cold air of the mortuary really hit Law, sending shivers up his spine. Drying all precipitation from his body, he slipped on his stock sleeping pants and socks. He left the morgue, passed through the laboratory, up two flights up the stairs, and straight into Scarlet's room; the owner of the space was fast asleep. He sat upon her bed after kissing her cheek, stroking her soft hair while she dreamed. He smiled gratefully at his child, wondering what he could have possibly done do have deserved the blessing that she was. He found himself falling asleep on her floor that night, his hand in hers.

Installing the morgue cost a pretty penny, but paid for itself instantaneously from Law's perspective. The next weeks had been much more organized for the surgeon, spending time on Scarlet's physical therapy, of which was improving, to assuming his duties as a captain, and sporadically operating on the damned who sought his help after critical injury. Those who were beyond saving were conveniently stored in the mortuary, providing Law company at night.

It was a peaceful Friday afternoon when the Heart Pirates docked on an island previously unseen by them. In a twist of events, it was Law who babysat while he trusted his crew to get the necessary supplies without getting wasted, despite the sun still hanging in the sky. They had used this time to play cards; Law had been teaching her the basics of poker, though she truly wanted to play "Go Fish", finding this concept a bit advanced for her mental capacity.

"You can do this, sweet heart. Your daddy was the best player in all of the Blue, just ask your uncles."

"If you were so good, why are you a pirate?"

"I figured looting fools our of their money upfront saved more time than feigning honest playing."

Their lazy card session was abruptly interrupted by the screams of numerous civilians near the docking area. Peaking his interest, Law instructed Scarlet to stay put as he raced out of the surfaced submarine, locking it before he left. He found a man laying in the middle of the street as a crowd circled around him, nobody brave enough to encounter him. Law wormed his way through until he was kneeling by the bloodied man tentatively grasping his stomach. His crew had been among the spectators; the surgeon and captain commanded them to carry the man to his laboratory. They had done so, Law unlocking the door that immediately led into the kitchen.

Scarlet was not sure what to make of the sight before her; she had seen many people enter with the most bizarre of injuries, so it did not phase her greatly. The worst she had seen was somebody burned terribly on the face, eye nearly melting. With her feet healed to a great extent, she furtively followed her father and his crew to the laboratory to see what the induced the agonized screaming. They had placed their patient on the metal table, him still holding his abdomen as if his life depended upon it. Law had to practically pry his hands off, which caused his intestines to spew out of him and into Law's hands. This absolutely mortified Scarlet, who instantaneously ran off, catching their attention.

"Shachi, console her!" Law yelled, intent on saving both this stranger and his daughter's innocence, or whatever could remain after such a sight.

The pirate ran off as the doctor went to work. Though he doubted anything positive would result from the emergency surgery, after two or so hours, the procedure had been a success, the man finally being in a stable condition. He requested that Bepo fetch Scarlet and bring her into the laboratory as he reexamined the man's vitals. Soon, his daughter joined him, face carrying evidence of fear. He held her against his hip, bringing her closer to the unconscious man, showing her that he was going to be alright, her then showing visible signs of relaxation. Slowly, the stranger's eyes fluttered open; he was too heavily sedated to begin thrashing about like most patients attempt to do, or even speak out coherently.

"Do not worry. I have treated your evisceration injuries. You will be safe and released as soon as you are fully recuperated, no charge of course."

The man sluggishly but gratefully nodded, moving around what body parts he could. Law placed Scarlet in a seat situated next to the table, as he left to go into the storage room next door to get bandages to wrap around his room, having run out in the laboratory. As soon as he left, Scarlet looked at the man, who returned with an unsettling smile as his eyes scanned the girl. She looked away, then quietly gasped as she felt his hand upon her upper thigh, lightly rubbing. He only retracted his hand when he heard the doctor's footsteps draw closer. He looked inconspicuous when he was bandaged again. When he was finished, Law grabbed Scarlet and left the man to rest.

"I don't like him, daddy."

"Neither do I, sweet heart, but I had to help him."

She grumbled a bit, evoking a sigh from Law. The sun was setting when they were back in the kitchen. From the windows, he could see that the shops and stores were closing, so he figured it logical to wait until tomorrow morning to get food and supplies. The only shop remaining open was the pizza shop conveniently close to the docks, so Law cordially ordered his crew to fetch a few boxes of variously topped pizzas for dinner. They had feasted well that night, distracting Scarlet from the ominous feeling of uneasiness she felt brewing. As he laid his daughter down for bed later that night, she confessed that she did not feel safe with that man on board. Law had figured out a reasonable compromise to cease her worries.

"Here," He said as he handed her a pocket knife, which was as wide as his hand when closed, "I trust that you will not treat this as a toy, rather as the potentially dangerous weapon that it is. I only want you to use this when it it absolutely necessary, do you understand?"

Scarlet nodded, taking her gift. He kissed her goodnight, then walked out to the doorway as she snuggled into the blankets. He turned as he reached the doorway, looking at his little girl, smiling.

"You realize I love you with all of my heart, correct?"

"Yes. I love you too daddy."

With that being said, he turned off her night switched. He walked into the burrows of his prided submarine into his new favorite mortuary. He slipped into his soiled attire, confronting a new member of his collection.

"And how are we today?" 

"Just fucking dandy!"

"Why do I always attain the sassy ones?"

"Why do I always find myself taken by Goddamn lunatics?!"

"I am not crazy." Law coldly stated.

"Said the man to the corpse."

In response to the man's rude remarks, he had grabbed the saw he attained for 'medical purposes', situated upon the shelf he had custom installed, and started sawing from the genitalia to the middle of the torso, filling his ears with melodic wails. Law could only maniacally laugh at the perceived cries from the object of his torment. He then decided to fill the hour with trials, seeing how different parts of the body reacted to a sulfuric acid formula he synthesized a while back. To his surprise, it had an easier time eating through the chest into the heart more than anything.

"You're a sick bastard! How the fuck do they even make you!?"

"I am practically a product of a tangible recipe. Do pay attention."

He brought forth a medial waste tub that had yet to be used. He then brought out various measuring instruments, prompting the captive to swing to and fro in a futile attempt of escape. Law found this mildly amusing, opting to swing him with his own hands, hearing a clanking sound from the chains rustling around his ankles. Thoughts returning to his original goal, he placed the tub directly under his botched experiment.

"Listen closely. Any variables that are changed within this recipe will yield disastrous results."

Using his trusty scalpel, he sliced into his cranium and extracted the frontal lobes of his brain, measuring to a half of a cup. Scraping inside his scrotum next, he managed a teaspoon of his now impotent semen, going on to slice an amount of his own hair from the back, doing so in a fashion that would make the cut unrecognizable. He finally grabbed his grater and scrapped a sprinkle of the remaining skin on the man.

"Here's the recipe; A half a cup satanical, a teaspoon puritanical," He dropped the ingredients into the shallow tub, then slicing off the man's arm, stating you need to stir it with a bloody hand, "a quarter cup messiahcal, a sprinkle of maniacal; now you are a Surgeon of Death."

The man gave no detectable response, infuriating the doctor greatly. He poured the contents of the bin onto himself whilst hissing, smearing the blood on his face. Covering the man's mouth with his hand, he placed upon it a chaste kiss, then expelling the corpse.

As he had intended, the Heart Pirates seized the Saturday morning to attain much needed groceries and medical supplies. Despite the massive amount of convincing she managed, she was still denied the right to stay alone aboard, her citing she needed an hour or so of privacy. Law had managed to come to a compromise with her: he would work in his mortuary, and she was free to go about the submarine unsupervised. Though she still yearned for independence, she took the bargain, knowing that another was unlikely to come along anytime soon. With that being set in stone, Shachi, Penguin, and Bepo vacated the premises in search of what they needed the most, while Law descended into the depths of the ship.

Scarlet realized that the silence in the submarine was indeed an idiosyncratic quality of her living situation, she took this opportunity to catch up on some reading with a book she received for her last birthday. Her stream of literacy appreciation was cut short when she heard an incessant rattling downstairs. It became cumbersome enough for her to place the bookmark on the page she was reading, close the book, and investigate the annoying noise.

During this time, the trio of pirates had made it into their first destination, obviously being the food market. Half way down the bustling street, they found a paper boy exclaiming the headline for the day, the title catching their interest. After purchasing a paper, they found that the day's quote was _"Man Disemboweled Turns Out to be Convicted Child Predator", _with the first paragraph stating he was a serial rapist who specifically targeted children. To add to their disgusted horror, they found themselves in the smaller front page picture beneath the main, captioned _"Four unidentified spectators grabbed the man,with witnesses stating they have overheard the quartet planning to perform surgery." _They needed not to read any further to realize the catastrophic mistake they had made, all frantically screaming in synchronization;

"SCARLET!"

Mentioned child had traced the source of the sound to the laboratory. Though she was apprehensive, the rustling became too much to bear. With limited temerity, she boldly ventured into the forbidden laboratory, noticing the lights were off. As she went to flip the switch, she heard the door shut, sending her heart into acceleration. Before a scream could have been emitted, she was grabbed from behind and had a hand held to her mouth, the appendage belonging to the formerly eviscerated man. As she thrashed about, her foot managed to hit the light switch, revealing he removed his intravenous therapy needle dripping into a decently sized pool, liquid containing the numbing morphine. She was briskly turned around in mid air, him catching her by the hips as he hungrily licked his lips. Without her consent, he ravished his lips onto hers, coating them in a slime that contained a foul taste. His tongue feverishly writhed its way into her mouth, trying to taste every inch as she drew hers back and tried to scream. Without even thinking, she bit as hard as she could down, slicing his tongue clean off, prompting him to drop her as he screamed while blood squirted out of him. Scarlet tried to run, but he had the door locked and he was directly blocking it, and she was told the morgue was always locked as well. The man began to regain his stealth and lunged for her, but she had her knife drawn, and followed the scar that her father recently repaired, sticking the blade in as deep as it would go. When she withdrew, his intestines once again spilling out of him uncontrollably as he fell to his knees. In a blind fury, Scarlet grabbed the spewing organs and wrapped them around his neck thrice, her pulling as hard as she could from behind. She pulled like this for a few minutes, until she saw the back of his bald head turn purple, letting his body fall to the ground. Her father taught her how to check a pulse, and she was able to confirm with confidence he was dead.

She had never felt a soulless hatred consume her fragile heart before; the whole ordeal traumatized her on a scale she would nor could ever understand. Her thoughts abandoned coherency as she ran for the door for the morgue, which was oddly unlocked. She was crying, as she had been the whole time, tears partially clearing the splatter of blood from her face. As she entered, the most heinous of odors offended her nose, momentarily distracting her from the misery. As it flooded her heart once more, she ventured inside to find corpses hanging upside down from the ceiling in the dead center of the room after exiting the small corridor. More disturbing, she found no other than her father, performing a waltz dance routine with a naked female corpse with his jolly roger carved all over her body, practically serving as clothing. His eyes were closed contently, until she complained that he was not talking to her enough.

"Silence is golden."

Although Scarlet only heard Law speak, she saw him become enraged with another suspended body,

"To reap what you sow is to truly withstand the majesty of this universe, Charlie."

"I sacrificed her, but not before I made practical use of her genitalia."

"NO!" He dropped his partner and crouched down, grabbing his ears before falling back.

"I would never do that you fuck! I love her too much!"

"Daddy!"

"You just want me to be like you, so we can be friends Charlie. I refuse, Charlie!"

His laughter ignited once more before Scarlet began sobbing heavily.

"There isn't anybody here daddy! What are you doing!?"

He could not stand the noise everybody seemed to effortlessly produce, prompting him to exclaim over and over for them to shut up, further frightening and confusing poor Scarlet. With the clanking increasing as he pushed the bodies, he begged them to stop moving, only for the shaking to worsen. Grabbing a machete he had stashed for safety purposes, he massacred the corpses of which were barely in tact to begin with. It was not until every single body was mutilated beyond comprehension he heard Scarlet crying, finding her a bloodied mess. His mouth hung ajar, finding him in a quiet stammer.

It was only luck that cleaned his slate with her in the previous incident. Though he never wanted to see harm come to his little girl, she would have completely feared and resented him if she had never bashed her head off of his desk. But there was no conceivable way that she would ever forget what she had just witnessed him do. He thought a lifestyle of his controlled chaos with a spark of insanity could balance itself out, but the biggest piece of evidence stood right before him, beyond petrified.

"I killed him, daddy." She simply muttered, staring off into space.

He slowly approached his daughter, bewildered she did not attempt to escape. He bent down to her level, gently cupping her cheek to raise her to meet eye contact. They shimmered, but only credible to the tears that moistened her face.

"I killed him, daddy." She reiterated.

"Who, sweet heart? Who did you kill?" He asked, breathing slightly becoming labored.

She took his hand and led him into his laboratory, where he found his patient seemingly strangled by his own intestines. Though he could not believe this was coming to mind, he was having a hard time debating who caused her more trauma: him or herself. She began sobbing uncontrollably, fully releasing the demons that festered within her. She audibly but shakily admitted that he forced kisses on her was trying to rub her all over. As Law comprehended what she told him, he quite nearly vomited in pure anguish. He began to weep like a child as he held her, saying that she was forgiven.

"I killed a man! I never killed anyone!" She didn't know what to believe at that moment.

"That's not true." Penguin said from the door way, the trio's eyes fixated on the mangled body that laid before them. She asked what they possibly meant, only for them to sternly look at Law, who has since then mostly composed himself, despite his tired eyes being reddened and brimmed with tears.

"Baby girl, your mother did not leave you. She died immediately after you were born. She just bled out."

"You mean a-a-all this time, I-I killed m-m-m-mommy!?" She sobbed again.

"I-I should never have been born, daddy! I'm so sorry!"

"NEVER say that, Scarlet! Mommy deserved exactly what she got, just like this despicable bastard! You are the only reason I wake up, sleep, eat, breathe. Smile."

She raised her head, wails quieting down to sniffles.

"I'm unimaginably sorry, Scarlet. You deserve a much better life than this. I never wanted to be a terrible father! I never wanted to scare you or put you in danger. I knew that was a given since I found out mommy was pregnant with you, but I loved you so much, and I still do, so I was selfish and I kept you anyway! Mommy was a terrible person!... She was terrible, like me."

He lowered his head in shame, sniffling with the occasional yelp of anguish.

"Daddy?" She cried slightly.

He raised his head, looking at his beautiful little girl. She removed the scalpel from his pocket, then walked over to her attacker's shirtless body, slicing into where she believed his circulatory system's catalyst to be. In a few seconds, her hands were inside of him, and she pulled out his inactive heart. She walked back to Law, placing his hand on the organ a she held it.

"You do realize I love you with all of my heart, correct?"

His grip on the heart faltered as hers did, and they embraced in a tight hug, needing it more than ever. They remained that way until the grief and strain wore out the girl, and she fell asleep in his arms. He carried her past his mortified crew, ascending to bathe her. When she was dried, she was placed into her favorite pajamas, being awake again at this point.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, sweet heart?"

"I don't ever want to remember this day. Can you make it go away?"

The frightening part of her request was that he could make it come true, though he doubted that it was a good plan. Yet again, was letting a seven year old feel the guilt of nearly being molested, then strangling the attacker with his own intestines? He drew a weary sigh.

"Are you sure that is what you wish?"

"I can't live with this. Life won't go on."

Against his better judgment, he carried her down into the recently cleaned laboratory, credits going towards his loyal and ever faithful crew. He laid her down on the metal table, cleaned her arm with rubbing alcohol, and entered in the intravenous therapy into her veins. The first medicine put her to sleep, but not before he kissed her forehead and proclaimed how dearly he loved her. As she was in her apparently peaceful slumber, he slipped the next drug into the bag, an amnesiac that was guaranteed to clean her slate for the past couple of days. He projected that she would be asleep for about twelve hours, to wake up a bit confused, but calm. The bag's contents were finally empty, so he removed the intravenous therapy from her vein and carried her to his room, where he laid on his mattress while she slept contently on his chest. He stroked her raven hair, it being the only thing to calm him down. After seeing her defend himself, he felt a conflict that tore at his soul; he now knew that she was able to defend herself, which put him at a bit more ease. However, he realized something that haunted him, although he felt that in her circumstance, it was completely and utterly justified:

She had the sinister capacity he did.


End file.
